Chapter 1,356 The Iron-Clad Gore Collapsed Suddenly

,!

What Rurik didn't expect was that with just the high-intensity output of ten torque slingshots, the opponent could collapse with just the force of a thrown javelin?

After all, they were also immigrants from the north. They were obviously well organized and had to form a shield formation. They should be more resistant to the attacks of the Russian army.

Unless, those who escaped were not northerners.

From a far distance, Rurik saw countless fleeing shadows, like a swarm of ants scurrying under the white snow. In this case, let those cowards in large numbers run away! They spontaneously fled the battlefield to save the Russian army from wasting arrows.

The torsion slingshots were still firing javelins, of which the Ross army was well-stocked, and they continued to pierce the air and pound the enemy with a buzzing sound. Because there is still a group of people who are rock solid!

Around Rurik, a large number of cavalry soldiers were jumping around.

The crossbowmen sitting on reindeer sleighs are also looking forward to the opportunity to fight.

They were all waiting for Rurik's orders.

It was clear that the cold wind hit his face, but Brody was both physically and mentally hot. He sat restlessly in the saddle, sticking his head out from time to time to observe the rapidly changing battle situation. "Your Majesty, those Danes are actually running away?"

"They are not Danes." Rurik said without changing his expression: "At most they are descendants of Danes. Well, they have lost the perseverance and cunning of northerners."

"I don't think so." Brody shook his head: "Those who escaped should be local Slavic villagers. The real Danes are still setting up shield walls there."

"I can see it, so they are not Danes. How can these people just stand there and be beaten passively? If I have enough javelins, I can slowly kill them all."

Shoot. Therefore, we have to get close and shoot through their heads with bows and arrows. "After that, Rurik looked around.

The vast number of soldiers were angry, and many of them blushed due to excitement and anxiety.

The restlessness in the army has become very obvious, and the enemy's collapse continues to develop.

Now, Rurik put the iron helmet hanging on the saddle on his head. This was a positive signal, and the anxious warriors cheered up.

Rurik suddenly drew his sword, and with the buzz of the sword wind, he shouted an order: "Cavalry! Archers! Let's attack!"

The soldiers received the order, and everyone let out deafening shouts. The Viking war cry was accompanied by long and low horns and high-frequency drums.

The four infantry flag corps were arranged in four square formations on the spot. Their flags were fluttering, and they were surrounded by a large number of reindeer herds and sleds. At first glance, they looked like a behemoth with an unknown number of troops. It looked offensive. The mobile force is only a small vanguard force.

All the shooters from each flag corps were removed, and they were divided into two parts to participate in mobile attacks together with the cavalry.

Rurik also made flexible adjustments in the face of the sudden change of the battle situation. How about mobile troops attacking the rigidly arranged infantry array? Look at the current situation. Isn’t this the time when classic Parthian tactics are displayed?

Now, Rurik leads the left wing, Brody leads the right wing, and the highly mobile offensive force is divided into two!

The torsion slingshot finally stopped firing fatally, and the twisting torsion ropes had cracked slightly. As the battle continued, the range of the javelin would become shorter and shorter, and eventually the breakage of the torsion ropes would cause the slingshot to be temporarily damaged.

Of course, with the rope lift

A batch of hand-rolled cables of acceptable quality were provided, and there was nothing wrong with using them to repair these heavy weapons after being oiled.

They stopped firing like cannons when they stopped roaring.

And what comes next is the highlight.

The king personally led the expedition and truly took the lead!

This kind of thing was rare in Rurik's combat career. In the past, he could not lead his brothers to fight with swords when he was young. Now that he has grown up, although the kingdom is so powerful that there is no need for the king to be a warrior himself, this kind of thing The king's arrogance in personally leading an army into a frontal battle was enough to bring the morale of the soldiers to its peak.

Because the king will fight with what he considers to be the strongest military force. If he can fight alongside Rurik, everyone will be the strongest.

The minds of the young warriors were blank and their timidity was non-existent.

The distance of more than 200 meters was neither far nor close. The cavalry accompanied the reindeer sleigh at a relatively fast speed on the snow. It was close to the speed of the dragon-headed warship's oars. In fact, this alone was not enough for the infantry. A huge advantage in combat.

"Don't shoot arrows at those who are running away! Kill all the Danes who continue to form a formation!" Rurik ordered loudly.

As he approached the cavalry, he saw clearly all the enemy's clues.

They were a group of blond warriors. Even though their round shields covered most of their bodies, it was only now that they were fighting that they could see their classic Nordic faces.

For a moment, Rurik actually felt a little regretful: "If, instead of following Gao Er, you had left this community earlier to join me. You... wouldn't have died here."

Rurik didn't bother to give Gall any room for explanation. Even after the army arrived near Pskov, he concluded that "

That man is dead."

Gower's life and death seemed to become insignificant. As long as the Danish army with round shields in front of them was wiped out, Gower's life would be as good as dead. Rurik also believed that the man was most likely hiding among these crowds.

The wildest battle the Pskov Danes had ever seen began now.

No orders are needed, the soldiers know what to do.

Including Beyashir, fifty Pecheneg soldiers led by her also joined the battle and formed a single force with the Ross 2nd Cavalry.

Her troops followed Rurik, allowing the cavalry fire on the left wing to be stronger and more accurate.

The well-preserved recurve bow showed off its beautiful bow body. The tapered armor-piercing arrow with the quenched rocket cluster was placed on the outside of the left hand holding the bow and on the back of the left thumb. The bone finger hooked the bow string, the warrior fully drew the bow, and then shot in the face.

The sword was sheathed, and Rurik himself held the recurve bow. Although he is a king, he does not have a bunch of subordinates who spend most of his time on military training. He did not have superb archery skills, but when facing the rigid Pskov warriors, he only had to fully draw the bow and shoot at this group of people. Aiming was secondary.

The first cavalry passed by on both sides, accompanied by the whizzing sound of a large number of arrow feathers. Those armor-piercing arrows directly pierced the wooden shields. Although the entire arrow body did not penetrate the shield and pierce the soldiers' bodies, it immediately shook their defenses.

His left arm was holding the wooden shield, but it happened that this left arm was shot by an arrow through the wooden shield.

Some Pskov soldiers were even more unlucky. They were accurately shot in the face by Pecheneg soldiers in the Russian army.

Immediate death came, and the deflated ball fell to the ground and expired.

The cavalry passed by like wind and clouds, and the three hundred and fifty cavalry fired a thousand arrows in a short period of time!

And this is where the disaster begins.

The reindeer sleigh transported a total of nearly five hundred crossbowmen!

Yes, any flag detachment of the Russian army has a centurion who is a part-time crossbowman, and the equipment of various individual long-range weapons is specially required to account for a quarter of the number. Of course, if the majority of soldiers are willing, they can also purchase single wooden bows to enhance their own combat effectiveness, and then improve the combat effectiveness of the entire flag team. However, these expenses are all at their own expense.

Most of the self-purchased single wooden bows are purchased from bow makers in Novgorod. Those local Slavic craftsmen are not good at making war bows, but they are good at making hunting bows.

Now it's a mobile close-to-face shooting. Even a low-pound single-body wooden hunting bow can show strong combat power when paired with the Ross Army's standard arrows.

Rurik indeed used all long-range weapons to the extreme. Except for the charioteers, the people sitting on the sled all aimed their bows and crossbows at the enemies who were stunned after being attacked by the cavalry.

The heavy steel-armed crossbow requires a winch to be wound, while the wooden-armed crossbow requires full body strength. This is all because they fire special heavy arrows that are shorter and thicker.

The half-pound crossbow is designed for close range shooting, and only the heavy steel-armed crossbow can produce terrifying tactical effects.

On both sides of the enemy's army, sled teams were arranged in columns. Crossbow-wielding warriors carried their weapons and passed by the enemy's formation one after another, and then pulled the triggers one after another.

The arrow was so heavy that the soldiers' bodies were shaken, but this heavy arrow was right next to the soldiers.

Under his gaze, he used a powerful impact to break away the enemy's wooden shield, which was as easy as tearing a piece of paper.

It was indeed too heavy. Under the strong kinetic energy, even the arrow shaft broke after hitting the wooden shield. The quenched collar-mounted arrow clusters then smashed into the enemy's body in a messy manner, and some even broke through the enemy's leather jacket and drove him into pairs.

The craftsmanship of collar-mounted arrow clusters lags behind the sleeve-mounted collars, but Ross mass-produces collars in order to produce quickly.

The wood pieces of the tail fin and the arrow body are made of ordinary pine wood. The collars are glued to the arrow clusters with pine glue and then tied with hemp rope. This is what a consumable crossbow arrow looks like.

After the reindeer sleigh team finished one and only round of shooting, they followed the cavalry and temporarily left the battlefield.

The sled team took the time to charge their crossbows on the side of the battlefield, and then it was still time for the cavalry to perform.

Rurik gently looked back at the people sitting on the sled. It would take some time for those men to return to the battlefield. He also noticed that they did not pursue more fleeing Pskov villagers when they could have. It is also possible that they rushed into the undefended city on the spot, but they still did not enter.

The soldiers stood on the sled and were busy stepping and operating the winch.

After going around in a circle, the cavalry on both wings continued to fire three times at a rapid rate, and the cavalry passed by again. A considerable number of people who suffered heavy losses from the powerful blow of the crossbows had no time to protect themselves with bucklers.

The battle actually developed into a kind of back-and-forth run. After Rurik and Brody looked at each other, they returned to the battlefield with their respective cavalry. They kept shuttled between the enemy's flanks, vowing to empty their quivers, but the cavalry The quivers on both sides are stuffed.

Full of arrows!

Gall has never seen this kind of fighting method. He was stunned at first, and now he is falling into deep despair.

Even with the construction of a shield wall, the outer warriors were still being shot and knocked down by magical arrows, and the strength of the Pskov Danish immigrant army was constantly shrinking.

"Boss, maybe we should withdraw!" Swader gritted his teeth and raised his shield above his head, yelling at Gower.

"Withdraw? How can we withdraw? Where else can we withdraw?"

"If we don't withdraw, we will all die."

"No. I can't withdraw!" Gower said righteously.

If Gore was really a coward, he would not have been able to dominate Pskov for several years. He relied on personal bravery to defeat all the competitors in the community, although it was he who initially vetoed the system of electing leaders and started As a hereditary first, no one can deny the bravery of this man.

This bravery was his final stubbornness. He always held up his shield to protect his head, and was not killed in the initial battle because he was caught in the middle of the team.

Now, a tall, muscular man had an erection.

Gower roared angrily: "Danes! Be brave and fight them!"

He was the first to awaken, and his courage infected many brothers in desperate situations.

After paying a large price of casualties, the Pskov army, with less than 200 warriors left who dared to fight, finally launched a counterattack under the leadership of Gall.

However... this counterattack is more like a trapped beast fighting in vain in despair.

Rurik noticed this and immediately ordered: "They are starting to fight back. Everyone keeps a distance and is not allowed to fight them head-on!"

The Ross cavalry can draw their swords and fight in close combat, and even use their mounts to directly hit the enemy.

Seven meat and eight vegetables. He cherishes the horse power and dare not do this. After all, the cavalry's ultimate plan is to use it to shine in the Frankish world. Besides, after many turns back and forth, the horse is already tired.

The cavalry and sleigh teams, driven by the commanders on the left and right flanks, deliberately retreated, which Gower considered an extremely cowardly act.

"Come on! Why are you running away? Come and fight with me?!"

A man holding a broad-edged iron sword high stood among a group of injured soldiers who were squirming after being hit by arrows. Around him were Pskov soldiers who had just sprouted fighting spirit but were quickly discouraged.

It was this man's cry that made Rurik pay attention to him.

Rurik held the reins and looked at the armed men with contempt.

Beyathil was furious and rode forward: "Khan (she still calls Rurik this), that man...could he be your enemy, Gall of Pskov?"

"Maybe."

"Send someone to talk to him? Maybe it's not necessary to kill them all. Besides, you see, the soldiers and the horses are a little tired." Beyathil said it tactfully. High-intensity archery shooting by mounted archers is very physically demanding. Likewise, War horses are unlikely to be able to withstand such frequent back and forth runs. There was even a point where the quiver stocks of each cavalry warrior were running low.

Rurik shook his head: "Your kindness is superfluous. In order to avoid future troubles, I must kill him."

Then a "wheat field" suddenly appeared in the enemy's position. The so-called "wheat ears" were all arrow feathers made of poultry feathers, and a man stood in it. Rurik heard that the man was indeed yelling, but he was not angry and did not launch another attack.

"Brothers!" Rurik shouted: "Take your bows

! Prepare to fire a volley at the yelling man! "

Even the crossbowmen who obeyed the order raised their weapons and placed their cheeks against their shoulder pads to complete their aim.

Rurik suddenly drew his sword, and suddenly the sword pointed directly at him: "Sjutar!"

A man in chainmail, carrying an iron sword, faced a group of cavalry, such as Goyle.

This was the bravest moment, the most heroic moment, and the most tragic moment in his life.

He didn't know until his death why King Rus killed him.

I will never understand until my death that the villagers here would collapse without a fight.

Until his death, he never knew that his army of Sorgon and his brothers who immigrated from Denmark could fight so cowardly in the final battle.

The sword was not stained with any enemy's blood, but was soaked with his own blood. The blood flowed from the wounds all over his body to his right hand, and then flowed along the sword's bleeding groove like a stream into the snow that had long been dyed red with blood.

Gall couldn't believe that there were already a lot of wooden sticks stuck in his chain mail.

No! That's a deadly arrow!

Horse archers and crossbowmen used Gore alone as a fixed target, and the chainmail armor strung with countless iron rings became meaningless. Fortunately, Gower was worthy of being a brave man. After being hit by so many arrows, his body was almost brought down by the force. He endured the pain to stabilize his balance and regain his footing.

He vomited blood and realized that he was about to die. He wanted to pick up the sword and roar at the enemy for the last time, but found that he could hardly use his right hand.

Finally, with the last of his strength, he raised the iron sword that he was proud of. He pointed the sword straight at the cavalrymen, standing like a monument on the battlefield full of corpses, as a final protest, just to express his feelings. my own

Unyielding stubbornness and resentment.

As the last mouthful of old blood surged, the iron-like Gore collapsed.

Seeing that their boss died in battle, the Danish soldiers from Pskov who were still resisting suddenly lost their morale and fighting spirit.

It seems that the armored man who was shot by random arrows was a senior official. He was about forty or fifty years old, so he was most likely Gower himself. Rurik showed no joy, but remained calm.

If Goyle dies, the Ross army, which already has an absolute advantage, should spare the remaining warriors.

but……

According to Nordic etiquette, when these soldiers entered the battlefield with weapons, everyone was prepared to die in battle. Because even those who are killed by strong men on the battlefield have a chance to enter the Hall of Valor. Based on this set of warrior beliefs, even if the boss Gower dies, the remaining warriors will still be able to hold on to their shields.

"Kill them all! Shoot!" Rurik finally ordered.

The officers and soldiers received the order, and the last surrounded Pskov warriors encountered free fire from crossbows from all directions. They were unable to fight and defend themselves, and eventually died one after another under the constant attack of arrows, and the earth turned scarlet and white. The difference in the land is horrifying.